Top 50 mid-market players of Worcestershire see revenues hit £2.4 billion

Worcestershire’s mid-market continues to boom, with the revenues of the region’s 50 top players increasing by half a billion in 2016. The manufacturing and precision engineering and retail sectors led the charge, with both adding considerably to the regional economy and employment.

BDO’s latest report into the health of the Worcestershire mid-market regional economy highlights strong growth, particularly in the manufacturing segment. The regional economy has been boosted by a range of factors, including support from Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and Herefordshire & Worcestershire Chamber of Commerce, each of which has worked to support regional business, from infrastructure roll-outs to company financing. Presently, Worcestershire’s top table of businesses seem to be among the most bullish in the UK, with the region’s top fifty mid-sized businesses enjoying substantial growth, seeing total revenue hit £2.4 billion. That accounted for a rise of £500 million from £1.9 billion the previous year.

While their growth was still eclipsed by the growth enjoyed by groups from Derbyshire in the same period, they are now growing more rapidly than the top businesses of Yorkshire. Earlier in the year, BDO reported that Derbyshire, which had seen the total revenue of the top 50 small to mid-sized businesses grow steadily over the past three years, recorded total revenue at the firms increased by almost 70% from £2.3 billion in 2014, to £3.9 billion last year. In Yorkshire, contrastingly, while the top fifty players continued to dominate the area’s total revenues, at £82 billion, a decline of 2% was noted since last year.

The increase in turnover of Worcester businesses as a whole was spread across varying districts, although not all districts managed to boost their respective economic output equally. Wyre Forest saw the biggest increase by far, up more than £200 million in turnover, from £394 million to more than £600 million. The region continues to punch above its weight, home to 18% of companies but 25% of revenues. Redditch also enjoyed strong growth, with district turnover increasing from £556 million to £675 million. Top 50 companies situated in Malvern Hills saw relatively small growth, with district revenue up from £22 million to £24 million.

Employment figures were less pronounced in increase among the districts, despite all districts witnessing an increase. Worcester City saw, relatively, the largest number of new employees – up from 1605 in 2015 to 2189 last year. Wyre Forest also demonstrated an increase of almost 600, to 4601, while Redditch saw more than 400 join the ranks, hitting 2891 employees in total.

In terms of the type of top 50 medium-sized business that has seen the most significant increase in turnover from the previous year, manufacturing and precision engineering lead the pack, with revenue increasing from £558 million to £782 million. The retail sector saw strong revenue growth too – supported by increased employment across the region – with turnover up from £522 million to £672 million. Real estate & construction went through a modest uptick in revenues, to £220 million, while transport, healthcare and financial services remained relatively flat. Professional services experienced modest growth, up from £336 million to £368 million.

The rise in manufacturing and precision engineering, and retail revenues, meant both sectors added considerably to their respective workforce numbers. The former added more than 800 to its ranks, while the latter almost 900. Professional services, meanwhile, saw their rank increase by close to 100, while healthcare and social care saw a decline of around 20 personnel over the period.

Top 25 players

The top 25 of the top 50 medium sized business saw five companies whose revenues increase by more than 50% on the previous year. Lioncourt Homes, centred in Worcester City, saw revenues jump by 123%, while Victoria, a manufacturing and precision engineering firm, takes the number two spot with a revenue increase of 89.3% to £255 million. Grey Technology, in Worcester City, saw an increase in revenues of 78.3%.

Manufacturing and precision engineering firms dominated the top 25, with 8 entries, followed by retail, with 7 entries. Real estate and construction, while having relatively lacklustre growth overall, manages 6 entries in the top 25, while financial services sees two entries.