Castleford based Solupak is eyeing up global expansion as demand rises for its ethical commercial cleaning products.
Solupak is a UK market leader in eco-responsible water-soluble cleaning products boasting a client list that includes retail giants Greggs and JLP group. The firm has been pioneering ethical cleaning products since the late 1990s, formulating and manufacturing its water-soluble cleaning sachets inhouse.
With supplier ethics and sustainability of increasing importance to commercial customers, ambitions to expand Solupak into European and subsequent global markets are high on the agenda for MD Helen McDonald and the Solupak team.
Keen to expand successfully, Helen joined The Alternative Board (TAB) Wakefield a year ago to support her in attaining the brand’s commercial ambitions. TAB has provided Helen with access to a peer group of non-competing local business owners, whose advice has been invaluable. Alongside this, Helen receives monthly 1:1 coaching sessions with Simon Banks, owner of TAB Wakefield on issues ranging from staff retention to marketing.
“I’m a firm believer that you can achieve far more in business by collaborating with peers,”
commented Helen McDonald, MD of Solupak.
“That’s why TAB really appealed to me as a newly promoted MD. Yes, I had the skills and confidence to fulfil the role, but I also had bold ambitions for the firm that I wanted an independent sounding board on. Finding the right people to sit around a table and discuss the real challenges and opportunities of our business has been crucial to creating an impactful and successful resource for myself. Meeting monthly with Simon and my peers has helped me to define a clear strategy for the business and set accountable goals every month. I’m now confident that we have the right structure in place to enter the European market further next year and scale the business successfully to meet growing demand for our products.”
Alongside being TAB Wakefield’s peer board facilitator, Simon Banks also runs his own successful timber manufacturing business. Understanding that business leaders at all stages of their career can benefit from investing time working on their business rather than in them, he has been delighted to support Helen:
“Helen has really benefitted from the collaborative element of TAB, spending time with peers in other sectors and understanding the many challenges that commercial businesses face,”
commented Simon.
“Helen’s peer board sessions have helped her to make some key business decisions which will significantly impact how Solupak is scaled. Equally, Helen’s commitment to eco products and ethical standards has brought invaluable insights to the group. It’s incredibly exciting to watch this firm’s trajectory and the entire peer board is fully invested in seeing Solupak succeed within international markets.”
Solupak is one of hundreds of UK SME’s flourishing thanks to TAB. Board member revenue growth between 2020 and 2021 averaged an impressive 28.4 per cent with 80 per cent reporting their turnover had increased since joining TAB.
TAB is a subscription model where members, who are owners and leaders of private businesses, pay a month-by-month investment for business advisory, planning and coaching services. TAB SME facilitators nurture the growth of local businesses, deriving immense satisfaction by facilitating positive changes in the lives of local business owners.
https://solupak.com/