One of the UK’s leading specialist interior fit-out contractors has reported another record financial year and has added new apprentices to its workforce. EE Smith Contracts, which marked its 125th anniversary last year, employs over 300 staff at its purpose-built headquarters in Leicester. The business has posted the highest annual
One of the UK’s leading joinery and interior fit-out contractors, which has posted the highest annual revenues in its history, has £60 million of secured work for the new financial year. Leicester-based EE Smith Contracts, which is celebrating its 125th birthday this year, has recorded a turnover of £61.5 million
One of the UK’s leading joinery and interior fit-out contractors is celebrating a major milestone this spring. EE Smith Contracts in central Leicester reaches its 125th birthday – and is marking the occasion with numerous celebrations and team building events. The company goes into its 125th year of trading with
One of the UK’s leading specialist interior fit-out contractors has completed a milestone 16-storey contract at Edwardian Hotels’ new flagship super boutique hotel in London. EE Smith Contracts, which has been carrying out work for Edwardian Hotels Ltd for the last 35 years, opened its factories on the Clarendon Industrial
One of the UK’s leading specialist interior fit-out contractors has reported another record financial year and has added new apprentices to its workforce. EE Smith Contracts, which marked its 125th anniversary last year, employs over 300 staff at its purpose-built headquarters in Leicester. The business has posted the highest annual revenues in its history for a second successive year – £75.1 million to the year ending March 31, 2023. This record-breaking activity includes working on multiple prestigious developments, particularly the luxurious Peninsula London hotel alongside Hyde Park Corner and Wellington Arch, and the completion of two super-prime London residences. EE Smith Contracts has added 18 new apprentices during the last financial year to build on its long-established apprenticeship programme, which has just achieved a fourth consecutive placing in the prestigious annual top 100 UK Apprenticeship Employers. The business has reduced carbon emissions by 30 per cent over the last two years despite a material growth in activity and is aiming to further reduce its carbon consumption in the next 12 months. Neil Bottrill, Managing Director of EE Smith Contracts, said profits have returned to pre Covid-19 levels despite the business absorbing significant building products inflation in the year due to, now completed, fixed price contracts. He said: “When viewed against the continuing headwinds of material and labour inflation, as well as huge increases in energy costs, this last 12 months has been a financial success and one to be very proud of. “We have had the pleasure, and challenge, of carrying out work in what can only be described as the very pinnacle of the super-prime fit-out market, both in the residential and hotel sector in London. “This underlines the fact that our skillset, drive and attention to detail continues to attract the elite of the fantastic industry that we are in. “Our apprentice programmes continue to prosper and are producing excellent results. We are actively producing our next generation of highly skilled joiners, supervisors and managers. Our schemes continue our underlying philosophy to ‘train and retain’ our skill base because our workforce will always be our greatest asset. “We have a promising year ahead with the excitement of handing over the largest project in our history at The Peninsula London hotel this summer, and we will also be starting work on some phenomenal new schemes which complement our existing portfolio.” Neil Simpson, Finance Director at EE Smith Contracts, added that the business has continued to invest in its facilities and employee development to maintain its unrivalled capability and craftsmanship. He said: “With the challenges of Brexit, the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine over the last five years, we have seen an extended period of uncertainty for UK industry. “The strength of our markets, our continuing focus on client satisfaction and our relentless hands-on approach have allowed our business to grow significantly in size and capability against this testing backdrop. “Due to high client satisfaction, we have a continuous stream of new business prospects from previous clients or their professional advisors. “The company is well set to continue to grow in the coming years, having retained surplus profits and further strengthened our robust balance sheet. “I am excited to see what the business can deliver once freed from the external challenges.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
One of the UK’s leading joinery and interior fit-out contractors, which has posted the highest annual revenues in its history, has £60 million of secured work for the new financial year. Leicester-based EE Smith Contracts, which is celebrating its 125th birthday this year, has recorded a turnover of £61.5 million for the year to March 31, 2022. This record-breaking activity has been secured partly by working on multiple prestigious developments including the luxurious The Peninsula London hotel overlooking Hyde Park Corner and the completion of 15 super-prime apartments in Knightsbridge in London. Profits have bounced back strongly following Covid-19 and are forecast to exceed pre-pandemic levels for the year ahead. EE Smith Contracts enters the new financial year with £60 million of secured work, with significant flagship opportunities for the months ahead. The business, which employs 285 staff, has reduced carbon emissions by over 20 per cent in the last year despite the growth in activity at its sites in Leicester and London by investing in a new £125,000 extraction system. There is also continued growth in long-established apprenticeship programmes, with 35 new apprenticeships having been recruited since the outbreak of Covid-19. Neil Simpson, Finance Director at EE Smith Contracts, said the company has enjoyed record-breaking liquidity through the year, giving it a secure platform for the coming years. He said: “The annual results to March 2022 have delivered the highest annual revenue in the company’s history which is due to the hard work and unwavering commitment of our staff. “We are in advanced discussions regarding a few contracts in the high-end residential and hotel markets which remain stable despite a challenging economic backdrop. “All this is the best possible way for the business to celebrate its 125-year history which is a history built on employee training and development and investment in cutting-edge technology, and delivering best-in-class craftsmanship. “EE Smith Contracts has a long history of training youngsters and a significant number of our current employees are former apprenticeships who have stayed with us because it is a family environment. “We have established great links with London colleges and have 30 apprentices on our sites in London who are learning from among the finest craftspeople in the country. The London labour market is very dynamic and we’re building the EE Smith Contracts family environment on those sites as well to retain our apprentices and provide a pathway for their career. “Further reductions are forecast in our carbon emissions following significant investment in carbon saving technology in the last six months because this is an area which is really important to us. “Overall, after evaluating the cost of the pandemic, which we estimate cost the business £3.8 million, to reach a stage where profits are now healthier than pre-Covid is testament to the high standard of our work and the high calibre of our staff.”
One of the UK’s leading joinery and interior fit-out contractors is celebrating a major milestone this spring. EE Smith Contracts in central Leicester reaches its 125th birthday – and is marking the occasion with numerous celebrations and team building events. The company goes into its 125th year of trading with its largest ever order book, totalling an impressive £115 million, which will lead to record annual revenues of £60 million this year and £70 million next year. To support the ongoing business growth and with eyes on the future, they continue to expand their award-winning apprenticeship scheme. This year, the business is increasing its number of employees more than ever before across its factory and site operations with 40 apprentices currently earning while learning across various departments in London and Leicester. The business was founded back in 1897 by Edward Elijah Smith who supplied and repaired gas stoves and chandeliers from Canning Street, Leicester. In 1937, he employed 14-year-old apprentice Basil Richardson who, after serving in the Second World War, returned to find Mr Smith in poor health, leaving Basil as the managing director and foreman at just 22! Basil put the company back on the road to prosperity, and later taught his eldest sons, Rodney and Nigel, who worked their way up through the business to take over in 1989. Under their guidance, EE Smith Contracts continued to thrive when the company expanded and developed into the super prime residential and five-star hotel market before a management buy-out in 2016, including Basil’s youngest son John Richardson. Rodney Richardson said there are not many companies in its sector that have been in existence for as long as EE Smith Contracts and with such a wide breadth of experience. “We have always delivered to a very high quality, with a real customer focus and I think that has been vital to our success and longevity,” he said. This trade-based, directly employed but customer centric approach to the joinery and interior-fit out sector led the company to undertake some of the most iconic projects across London such as the Savoy Hotel, Battersea Power Station, the Houses of Parliament, One Hyde Park Penthouses and The Corinthia Hotel. Further testament to the excellence EE Smith has continued to offer over the decades is the 40-year continuing relationship with the Edwardian hotel group, culminating in the recent fit out of The Londoner Hotel in Leicester Square which is the largest in the company’s history and included a full fit out of 355 bedrooms and bathrooms and all of the public area spaces. Neil Bottrill, managing director at EE Smith Contracts, said that the 125-year milestone was an incredible achievement and was a testament to the hard work and skill base throughout the company and the loyalty of the staff who give the business, despite its size, a real family feel. “Our current portfolio of projects is amongst the best in the UK fit-out and joinery markets and we have every reason to believe that further exciting times are ahead for the business,” he said. “We are growing year-on-year and we currently have 40 apprentices, doubling last year’s apprentice joiner workforce. We hope they will rise through the ranks and be an asset to the company as we teach them the skills we have always relied on for EE Smith Contracts to prosper. “Despite our evolution over the years our core values established by Edward Elijah Smith in 1897 are the same, as we strive to deliver the highest quality product and service whilst operating as a close-knit community, with our incredible people at the forefront of our success. “We will continue using the latest cutting-edge technology and seamlessly merging this with our unparalleled craftsmanship to continue setting the standard in our industry. Here’s to the next 125 years!”
One of the UK’s leading specialist interior fit-out contractors has completed a milestone 16-storey contract at Edwardian Hotels’ new flagship super boutique hotel in London. EE Smith Contracts, which has been carrying out work for Edwardian Hotels Ltd for the last 35 years, opened its factories on the Clarendon Industrial Estate in Leicester 24 hours a day during peak capacity to help create London’s largest new luxury hotel, The Londoner. The Londoner, which has been designed in collaboration with Toronto and New York based design studio Yabu Pushelberg, has been branded as the world’s first super boutique hotel and its highly-anticipated opening is due this month. (September) There are 350 guest suites with views over Trafalgar Square and Leicester Square over 16 storeys which also includes six food and beverage outlets. There is also a two-screen cinema, a 1,000 capacity pillarless ballroom and an event space for corporate hire or private parties with a bespoke half honed half polished green marble floor and unique, fabric clad wavey walls. The Londoner features an area called The Retreat which has a swimming pool, private cabanas, a detox juice bar, hair and nail salon, treatment rooms and a gym. There is also The Residence which features three exclusive bars and eateries which are open 24 hours a day for exclusive use to meet every hotel guest’s needs. The hotel is home to £5 million worth of art throughout the building to enhance the boutique style experience within the west end district of London. The work has involved finishes on the project from all over the world such as 350 lava stones from Italian volcanos. Neil Bottrill at EE Smith Contracts said it had been fantastic to work on helping to create The Londoner. He said: “We have continued our 35-year relationship with Edwardian Hotels by collaborating on their super boutique flagship, The Londoner. “When this first-of-its-kind ‘iceberg’ hotel opens, it will be the largest hospitality opening in London post-Covid. “This has been a very collaborative project that we were chosen for due to our in-depth understanding of Edwardians’ expectations, standards and their way of working. “There were 78 finishes schedules across the project whereas we usually have a maximum of three which highlights the scale of this project. “We have shown our innovation and adaptability in the manufacturing of bespoke joinery for each of the 350 suites which was made possible by operating 24/7 from our Leicester HQ. “Covid did interrupt completion but the finished result is absolutely stunning and the opening of The Londoner will definitely give a much-needed boost to the hospitality industry.” Krishma Singh Dear, of Edwardian Hotels London, added: “Edwardian has worked with EE Smith for 35 years on all of our refurbishments. “We therefore know that EE Smith is able to produce a high-quality fit-out that withstands the test of time. “The Londoner was a project that was extremely complicated in terms of its detailing and scale. We believe EE Smith has done a fantastic job and we are all proud of the finished product.”
