After winning the first ever Sittingbourne Business of the Year award last year, Gallery Direct are hoping to capture another trophy at the 2017 Swale Business Awards.
Gallery Direct has been working at the heart of the Swale business community for many years, initially starting as a family run mirror and framing manufacturer. The Company has grown over the past four decades into one of the leading British based designers, manufacturers and worldwide distributors of furniture, home décor and accessories, supplying a wide range of retailers, from small independents to large nationals.
Managing Director, Peter Delaney, remarked on the what had changed in the business over the last 12 months: “We invested significantly in the business in 2016, with a warehouse expansion and introduction of our own transport fleet – both of which were vital for continued growth. Now we have this essential infrastructure in place, the last year has been focused on product development and core sales, ensuring we continue to have a stable growing base going forwards. We have also been working hard with our suppliers to manage the consequences of Brexit, focusing on effective procurement, supply chain management and value engineering. By continual investment and improvement in the process, we are still able to offer customers exceptional value for money.”
With 88 employees currently working in their business on the Eurolink, Gallery Direct are a significant local employer, and Peter is quick to acknowledge that people are the key to the business’ current and future success. “We offer a friendly, relaxed, but professional working environment that is exciting and challenging for all. It’s an environment where people can see career opportunities within a fast expanding company, as well as a policy to develop and promote from within. We have high retention rates, with some of our original employees now holding senior management positions. Over the last 12 months we have also recruited new colleagues, including a HR Manager, an in-house Health and Safety expert, and increased our Apprentices to four.”
Peter feels that there is a lot separating Gallery Direct from its competitors: “The strength of our team and our investment in them, developing their skills and expertise, combined with the unique design and originality of our products makes us stand out from the crowd. We always want to ‘lead by design’. Our experienced and highly skilled team enables us to constantly develop exciting, new, on-trend products to stay ahead of the market. Their expertise enables my colleagues to work closely with suppliers, to ensure we offer high quality, competitively priced products to our customers.”
Finally Peter explained why he felt that Gallery Direct should be 2017’s Swale Business of the Year: “Gallery Direct deserves an award due to our loyalty to Swale and our determination to continue improving, for our customers’ benefit, as well as our own. From a small family business, this local Swale company has grown into a large, nationally known brand and a supplier of quality furnishing solutions attracting international clients and suppliers from around the world. Throughout this period, we have maintained our core family values and a team ethos. With the introduction of our own delivery infrastructure and expansion of our warehouse, the investment in our Swale Headquarters has resulted in a threefold expansion of our workforce within recent years.”
Gallery Direct Ltd
Castle Road
Eurolink Commercial Park
Sittingbourne
ME10 3RN
01795 439 159
www.gallerydirect.co.uk