Location:
Creative Play is relocating to Tilston Court, Borders Industrial Estate on River Lane in Saltney, Chester this summer to support its long overdue expansion. The modern industrial warehouse boasts 10,000sq ft of space and has its own self-contained yard.
Occupier:
Manufacturer and installer of children’s outdoor play equipment, Creative Play has been in business for 30 years and has occupied its current premises for 22 years. The business is now ready to take its growth and sustainability plans even further and has outgrown its premises on Knutsford Way, Sealand Road, Chester.
Creative Play has 45 staff to accommodate and is keen to move everyone over to its new premises which will enable them all to integrate even more.
James Harris from Creative Play said: “Our current site has served us well, but we really need to move now to accommodate our ambitions. We started looking in 2020 before Covid-19 hit and of course, plans were put on hold due to the pandemic.”
The current premise is 9,500sq ft so whilst the square footage isn’t a huge change, the shape and layout of Tilston Court makes it possible for Creative Play to grow.
James added: “Where we currently occupy, the layout is an L shape whereas Tilston Court is a more usable size and shape. Plus, it has an enormous yard space which makes a big difference too and we will make a lot of use of.”
James and his team are currently overseeing the build of office space within Tilston Court too which will allow him to move manufacturing, production, sales, marketing and admin all over to the site.
The new unit will allow Creative Play to:
- Hold more stock
- Consolidate the production process
- Become more efficient
- Create a nicer working environment
- Work towards its goals of being Net Zero
James added: “Lead times and availability of stock can be difficult so stock holding will certainly help to futureproof our business, it’ll make a huge difference. We’ve been wanting to make some improvements to production for a long time which we couldn’t do due to space but now we can.
“We want to use more recycled products and plastics and the extra stock holding capabilities will mean we can. We’ll also recycle our cut offs and send them back to our plastic manufacturer so the plastic can go full circle.
“Having new, fresh offices will make it nicer for people to come to work. Having a clean, modern workplace where we can bring the office staff and production together will help our goals to continue creating a work environment that everyone enjoys being a part of. We’ll have a big break room, canteen, shower room and eventually EV charging stations and solar panels to help us work towards becoming Net Zero. We want people to want to work with us and feel proud to work with us.”
James has agreed a 10-year lease currently for Tilston Court but hopes to stay for much longer. He added: “It’s been a great experience working with Sandyford Properties and very straightforward.
“Moving to Tilston Court is an exciting opportunity for us. It gives us the space to grow and the chance to do what we’ve been talking about doing for a long time. It will ultimately make us a better company.”
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