Caerphilly-based company heads the FastTrack 100 chart
ACOMPANY based in Caerphilly has been revealed as the fastest growing business in the UK.
Aerfin supplies replacement engines and spares parts to airlines around the world.
Its rapid sales growth of 231.26% over the last three years has propelled it to the top of this years’ Sunday Times Fast Track 100, which ranks the fastest growing private firms in the UK.
It’s one of five firms from Wales to make it into the influential league table this year.
The others are taxi hire provider Veezu at fourth place, Zip World at 45, branded clothing retailer Character.com at 46 and online sports good retailer Net World Sports at 85.
Between them the five have seen their sales grow by an average of 115% a year over three years to a total of £113m, and together they employ 560 people.
AERFIN
Aerfin, which was also named the fastest growing indigenous business in Wales in this year’s Wales Fast Growth 50 initiative, has achieved an annual sales growth of 231.26% over the last three years.
The £60m turnover employs 73.
It has spent more than £100m buying aircraft, engines and spares worldwide, which it recycles and sells or leases.
And it recently secured a sevenyear contract to provide component support for 20 British Airways jets.
VEEZU
Newport-based taxi group Veezu is ranked 4th, having achieved annual sales growth of 157%.
Making its debut on the list it achieved sales of £20.3m in 2016.
In September it acquired V Cars, in a deal marking its seventh acquisition.
ZIP WORLD
business Gwynedd-based adventure course operator Zip World is 45th ranked with a 66% growth rate.
Zip World, which runs three activity centres in Wales visited by 4,000 people a day. It says its zip wire is the fastest in the world, and the longest in Europe.
Sales reached £7.2m in 2016, and in 2018 it will start work on an adventure hotel near Snowdonia.
CHARACTER.COM
Swansea-based branded clothing retailer Character.com is ranked 46th with a 66% growth rate.
Husband and wife team Karen and Stephen Hewitt set up the business in 2009 after selling their children’s old clothes on eBay.
The company designs and produces 95% of its products which range from Minecraft pyjamas to Scooby-Doo backpacks.
Sales in the UK, Spain, France and Germany reached £6.5m last year.
NET WORLD SPORT
Wrexham-based Net World Sports, which sells 100,000 football goals online a year globally, is ranked 85th with a growth rate of 52%.
Its customers range from families and schools to Premier League clubs and it made sales of £18.2m this year.
It has also been named as an approved supplier of aluminium goals by the Football Association.
THE LIST
The Fast Track 100 is sponsored by Virgin, Barclays, BDO, BGT and Virgin Media Business and is compiled by Fast Track, the Oxford-based research and networking events firm.
Sir Richard Branson of Virgin, the title sponsor, said: “Entrepreneurs are the lifeblood of the economy; driving innovation, creating jobs and challenging industry norms.
The achievements of the companies on this year’s Fast Track 100 list are fantastic.
“It’s clear over the coming years UK business will have to adapt to different conditions and we must do all we can to support our entrepreneurs – who will be the engines of growth for Britain. ”