A Welsh animal bedding firm is in in the running for a trio of awards – including a national accolade for the best small business in the whole of the UK.
Platts Animal Bedding, based on Llay Industrial Estate, is a finalist in the Small Business of the Year category at the British Chamber of Commerce’s 2019 Business Awards.
The winners will be announced at a special ceremony on November 28 at the Tobacco Dock in east London with Platts are the only Welsh firm to make the category shortlist.
The news comes just after the firm was shortlisted for Business of the Year and Young Person/Apprentice of the Year awards at the West Cheshire and North Wales Chamber of Commerce awards, which take place the fortnight before.
Apprentice Ethan McDermott with Caroline Thedens, managing director. Image source: Mandy Jones
Caroline Thedens (above right) is managing director of Platts Animal Bedding, which was started by her parents Robert and Christine from their farm in Marford more than 45 years ago.
The company specialises in cattle bedding, in particular for the dairy farm market, but also supplies equine and poultry bedding too.
Caroline said: “To be flying the flag for Wales in the small business category at the chamber’s national awards is an honour in itself and I am thrilled for the whole team to have even got this far.
“We are still very much a family-run firm and getting to where we are has been down to the hard work and dedication of our 58-strong workforce and I think we all feel this has been a tremendous achievement to even make the shortlist.
I think the judges were probably impressed by the ethos, growth and development of Platts. We take a surplus wood product and recycle it which is a service in itself but we go another important step further and turn it into a top quality product for our customers which makes the whole business model very impressive in terms of sustainability.
“We can also point to many areas of growth within the business, in terms of turnover and profit, job increases and our commitment to investing in and developing the business with new technology, so we can continue to absorb and look after more customers.
“This has happened relatively quickly in recent years. In the last year alone, we have invested £1.2 million, which includes new baling technology in our factory, allowing us to create a product which is better for both ourselves and our customer.
“Our commitment to investment and development will not stop here and we will invest half a million a year for the next few years too as part of our drive to move forward with further development plans.
“In particular, with our goal to expand further within the Irish dairy farmer market where we know there is more opportunity for us.”
Caroline added she was also very proud of her firm’s young apprentice Ethan McDermott (18) of Pentre Maelor, who is up for his own award.
Ethan joined the firm in February as a Welding and Fabrication Apprentice who works at the company’s own HGV approved commercial garage which is based close to their main offices in Miners Road and services and repairs the firm’s 25-truck fleet and its 140 trailers.
She said: “Ethan has an extremely mature attitude and proved himself as hardworking, humble and dedicated to his job and professional development since starting with us only seven months ago.
“He’s the ‘perfect role model’ to any apprentice, he’s punctual and takes pride in his work. With his positive attitude and accommodating personality, we feel he will go far in his career at Platts.”
