SNG Barratt Limited
A classic great British success story
For 40 years SNG Barratt has been serving classic Jaguar owners from all over the world. It all started in the late Seventies when Hazel and Stephen Barratt decided to sell some parts from an E-type they had used as a donor car to mend their own. The huge response revealed a gap in the market. ‘So they set about filling it,’ says MD Julian Barratt during PC’S visit to the Bridgnorth HQ. ‘And today there isn’t a part of the world that we can’t reach.’
Both through acquiring old stock to sell on and then, bit by bit, to remanufacture items for the E-type that were no longer available, the Barratt family built up the business from scratch and today SNG Barratt is the world’s largest independent supplier and manufacturer of parts and accessories for the marque.
‘The remanufacturing process started by out-sourcing a small number of items,’ says Julian. ‘We’ve expanded to thousands of parts that we manufacture both in-house and through our suppliers.’ During our visit there certainly are many hands at work making new parts for old Jaguars, some using original machinery bought from the factory.
In the Nineties SNG Barratt purchased Sovy UK, the original supplier of many electrical components for Jaguar, Aston Martin and other British car manufacturers. This allowed SNG to make a huge range of electrical lines. ‘We also went on to purchase a number of original Lucas assembly lines allowing us to remake switches, washer bottles and lamps. It means that hundreds of long obsolete parts are available off the shelf again.’ All SNG’S processes are compliant to ISO 9001 standards and the UK branch is accredited by Jaguar as an Authorised Parts Dealership, allowing access to the full range of genuine Jaguar parts and resources. ‘We are not just parts suppliers, we also develop new parts using our test vehicles.’
SNG stock thousands of parts that are no longer available anywhere else, safeguarding the future of classic Jags the world over. ‘And it’s important to emphasise that we are not just a faceless company,’ concludes Julian, ‘We’re on the road throughout the year at a range of events where you can take advantage of our popular pre-order collection service and chat to our team. Our open-door policy allows us to regularly welcome visitors here in Shropshire; whether it is to our in-house shop counters or on guided tours of our workshops.’ As we finish the trip, Julian reveals himself as an enthusiast, introducing us to his latest acquisition, a late V12 E-type. ‘It’s very original. I love it.’