Award nomination for Gloucester customer

We’re delighted to hear that Martin Berrill Sports, a long term customer of our Morelands Trading Estate in Gloucester, has been nominated for a national award.

Sports Trade Awards

The sports retailer is one of the only companies in the world to still manufacturer cricket bats by hand, using willow sourced from the UK, which can be made specifically to meet customer requirements. It has been shortlisted for the Best Independent Retailer category in the Sports Trade Awards 2013, which came as a fantastic surprise for the team.

“Someone called up to congratulate us on the nomination and at first we thought they were winding us up,” company founder Martin Berrill says.

“We still haven’t managed to find out who nominated us, so it was a bit of a shock, but a great surprise.”

World-renowned

The firm launched in 1986 and has been a customer of our customer in Gloucester for the entire time it has been owned and managed by Bizspace. Their 3,000 square foot unit is where the cricket bats are carefully made by hand – a craft that has won the company customers worldwide.

“We are currently doing some work for a customer in Hong Kong and last year we did orders for Argentina and Brazil.  People sometimes find us on the internet, or sometimes people who know of us go to work abroad and recommend us,” Martin says.

Martin has been making bats since he left school and says that to him, cricket is a sport, a hobby and a job rolled into one. The firm has expanded into supplying equipment for hockey, rugby, netball, football and racquet sports and most of the team have an interest in the sports or play them personally.

The Sports Trade Awards seeks to recognise those in the industry who display innovation and forward thinking, alongside traditional sales and business acumen. There is still time to vote online for Martin Berrill Sports. Voting closes on Friday 7 June 2013.

Business space for rent

Morelands Trading Estate has more than 70 business units, including:

• offices
• workshops
• industrial units
• studio space and
• meeting rooms

For further information contact Business Centre Manager, Jackie Houslop, on 01452 311 421.