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FBC Manby Bowdler LLP Advises on DayMen International Expansion- 22/09/2010
West Midlands law firm FBC Manby Bowdler LLP has advised on a major expansion at a leading international supplier of photographic accessories which has seen it sign a new lease on its present Wolverhampton city centre premises, following a six figure investment.
Gavin Southall, senior partner at Wolverhampton-based FBC Manby Bowdler, led a team of lawyers which advised DayMen International Limited on a new five year lease, and a £200,000 investment to increase warehouse capacity by more than 20%, on its 40,000 sq ft of industrial property at Merryhills Enterprise Park on Park Lane in Wolverhampton.
Headquartered in the USA, DayMen is the world’s leading world-wide supplier of camera cases.
From Wolverhampton DayMen supplies camera accessories including Lowepro, Acme Made and Always On camera cases, ¬Giotto's camera and lighting supports, ¬B+W filters and Camera Armor skins to UK retailers as well as managing exports to distributors in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Thirty people are employed in DayMen’s Wolverhampton office which is responsible for an annual turnover of around £15 million.
Following rapid growth since it was first established in Wolverhampton in 2000, and needing additional warehousing capacity, DayMen had considered moving to new premises on the outskirts of Wolverhampton, but the recession made it reconsider. Instead, after detailed negotiations, it opted to renew the lease on its three buildings at Merryhills Enterprise Park, after a comprehensive review of the use of its warehousing space.
“Building a new loading bay, to which our landlord agreed to contribute as part of the lease negotiations, re-engineering our warehouse racking system and investing in some new forklift equipment gave us in excess of 20% more productivity in the same space,” explained Nigel Fielden, Managing Director of DayMen International. “We also avoided the disruption and cost to our business which a move would have caused.
“We have got a great team of people here, so we were keen to stay in Wolverhampton. The city is also very central for distribution, but it was hard to find the right premises to meet our needs, so in the end our solution to stay put and increase capacity was the right one, especially in light of the recession.”
However, according to Mr Fielden, business is looking strong for the future. He said: “Although photographic equipment is a discretionary purchase, our business has been quite resilient, as even when faced by a recession our consumers are reluctant to give up spending on their cherished hobbies. 2008 was a challenging year, but sales improved in 2009 and are looking very good for the present year.
“FBC Manby Bowdler has advised us on a full range of legal matters since we started business in Wolverhampton. The advice we received on negotiating the new lease and protecting our position was invaluable.”
Mr Southall said: “It is a pleasure help a company which had positively chosen Wolverhampton as its base, and which continues to thrive here. We need more modern entrepreneurial companies, such as DayMen International, in the city.
With 38 partners, FBC Manby Bowdler is one of the largest law firms in the West Midlands.