One of Worcestershire’s newest industrial developments has been snapped up in a deal that is bringing jobs and investment from a fast-growing HVAC hire firm to Redditch, thanks to commercial agents John Truslove.
Ian Parker, joint managing director at John Truslove, has overseen the 10-year leasing deal that sees Rapid Energy open a new Midlands HQ as part of a £5 million, five-year investment programme in Redditch.
The company has taken the first new speculative industrial development in the area for many years, providing 16,000 sq ft of modern office and warehousing space.
Rapid Energy hires out heating and cooling equipment, including boilers, to customers nationwide in the healthcare, defence, industrial and education sectors. The Redditch move is the company’s first expansion outside its Sheerness base in Kent.
Chief executive Julien Fougere said: “We chose Redditch because of its excellent transport links and the availability of its educated and motivated workforce.
“There’s a high concentration of mechanical and technical skills that are applicable to our business within this area. We’re proud that we have taken a working environment that honours the investment we’re making in our employees.”
Founded in 2020, the company is experiencing substantial growth.
Julien Fougere said: “We are growing our turnover in excess of 200% per year.
“We have grown from seven employees last year to 18. We have hired seven people in Redditch in the last year, and the majority of the future employment opportunities we create in the next 18 months will be in Redditch.
“We have an allocated headcount to add a further four employees there this year.
“The initial investment to open Redditch was only £350,000. We plan to invest £5 million in Redditch over the next five years.”
Rapid Energy worked with Ian Parker at John Truslove to secure a 10-year lease, at £160,000 per annum, on Unit 48F in Pipers Road, on the Park Farm Industrial Estate. This 16,000 sq ft new development provides both office and warehousing space.
Mr Fougere said: “The team at John Truslove knows the local commercial market inside out and upside down due to the dominant position they hold in the area. As a result everything went like clockwork with our search and with the subsequent process.
“The site was nearly perfect for our needs and needed little work to get started. The landlord, Simon Pointon, has delivered an extremely well-finished and specified facility.”
He said Rapid Energy’s focus was on “fast response times for emergency situations, full turnkey solutions and the highest level of customer services”.
“Our customers cannot provide their services without us providing critical services within their buildings. Simply put, they cannot function without heating and/or cooling.
“We’re expanding nationally. We chose Redditch as our first step in our national expansion plans but we’re also locating the bulk of our administrative and clerical functions within Redditch. We’re delighted to be able to offer exciting new employment opportunities as we grow the company.”
The Midlands depot will be headed by Rapid Energy’s sales director Stephen Reynolds.
Ian Parker added: “This is an important deal for both Rapid Energy and for the local area, bringing jobs and long-term investment from a company that is clearly going places.
“We were delighted to be able to provide our experience and knowledge of the area’s commercial property market to help achieve a deal that will have a major positive impact on the local economy.”
Unit 48F’s owner, and Rapid Energy’s new landlord, Simon Pointon added: “The speed with which this new unit has been snapped up underlines the strong demand for warehousing and industrial property in the area.
“We were intent on delivering a high-quality property and as a result have attracted a strong tenant with the help of Ian Parker and the John Truslove team.
“We have worked with them many times in the past; they are always highly professional and extremely knowledgeable about the property market. Ian made sure the whole process went very smoothly and we will certainly be working with him again on future projects.”
John Truslove was recently named top commercial property agency in Worcestershire again – for the third year in a row. The company, now in its 42nd year, left the competition standing.
In 2022, John Truslove signed off 77 deals, more than all the other top five agents in Worcestershire combined. In Warwickshire, John Truslove ranked fifth. The figures are revealed in the latest EG Radius On-Demand Rankings, the property trade national league table of commercial agents.