The Coventry branch of global giant Fastenal has moved into new premises in the city to accommodate future growth.
The operation, which provides fasteners, tools and other supplies to the manufacturing industry throughout the Midlands, has relocated to Henley Road Industrial Estate in the north of the city.
US-based multi-billion dollar Fastenal, which has branches in 24 countries worldwide, chose Coventry as one of its first bases in the UK in 2011 and now has 16 branches in the UK and Ireland.
Kimberley Marsden, general manager of the Coventry branch, which is part of Fastenal Europe, said the size and location of the new premises, close to junction two of the M6, would support expansion plans.
She said: “Business here is booming and this new unit provides us with room for further growth.
“As well as supplying nuts, bolts and screws to large manufacturing divisions across a range of sectors, we provide Personal Protective Equipment for work and consumable products through our vending machines.
“The vending machine side accounts for a large percentage of our business here and is really driving our growth.
“The unit is central to the region that we service and from here we are ideally placed to target more business in Birmingham. In the longer term, it may also give us the potential to act as a hub to hold and distribute stock to our branches throughout the UK and Ireland.”
The 8,700 sq ft unit was one of two recently built at Henley Road Industrial Estate by The Wigley Group, which owns the site, to help meet a recognised shortage of commercial property in the city.
The works were completed by Wigley Building and Development, the construction arm of The Wigley Group.
Louis Smith, estates manager at The Wigley Group, said: “We are delighted to welcome Fastenal to Henley Road Industrial Estate which has been part of our commercial property portfolio since the late 1990s and is a thriving multi-tenanted site.
“The unit is the larger of two built as a speculative development to help meet a clear demand for commercial space and we hope it will be a platform for Fastenal’s continued growth here in the city.”
Fastenal’s move coincides with a new partnership with Coventry University which has resulted in the appointment of two placement students, Katie Sclare and Shafyur Rahman.
Kimberley added: “It is an exciting move for us as a branch on several fronts. It’s fantastic to have our first placement students who will be with us for a year as part of their degree courses.
“I was the first apprentice that the company took on when I joined nearly five years ago as the youngest employee at the age of 17.
“I have since had the opportunity to work my way up to becoming the youngest general manager in the UK when I was appointed in May, and I’m really looking forward to driving the business further forward from this new base.”