heatons is founded

Drawing from his own experience gained working in sales, David Heaton Fielding establishes Heaton Stationery, in Hoylake on the Wirral.

The company ethos is to provide office supplies to local businesses at competitive prices but with a level of customer service above and beyond the industry norm at that time. Confident this is a winning formula, David takes on 3 more people to build the business and make inroads in the local area.

The hard work and long hours pay off as the business grows at 15% or more year on year. The original team of four (David, Berry, Brett & Wendy) grows steadily with more additions to the salesforce and customer service team.

location location relocation

It soon becomes clear the business requires bigger premises to meet the needs of its rapidly growing customer base and Heatons moves to a larger building on the same road. The business continues to flourish and soon outgrows the space once again, relocating to its first own premises, Lairdside Technology Park, Birkenhead in 1999.

From a small unit of just 1,000 sq. ft, Heatons now has its own building of more than 14,000 sq. ft, but more importantly it has the office space and warehouse facilities it requires to continue its growth and strengthen its foothold in the Northwest.

At this point Heatons changes its name to Heatons Office Solutions to better reflect the growing range of services now on offer.

strategic growth

A dedicated print and design team is introduced, offering a selection of printing and finishing methods across a huge range of printed products. It rapidly becomes one of the fastest growing divisions, with many customers ordering their print and promotional gifts along with their office supplies.

Acquiring both Lakeland Office Point and Lakeland Business Systems in Penrith, followed by the stationery division of Integrity Office Supplies, the business makes a home in Cumbria.

The further acquisition of McGregor’s Office Supplies in Macclesfield in 2013 establishes a location in Cheshire, which is later followed by the purchase of Webber Office Solutions in Rhyl, strengthening customer service and delivery teams in Wales.

In 2014 all branches come together under the unified name of Heatons, with each site gaining access to improved resources and infrastructure.

market development

A production facility is built at the Merseyside head office to support the rapid growth in Workwear & PPE. The new embellishment suite enables quicker lead times and greater control of the personalisation process.

Our Cumbrian branch relocates to a larger premises within the Gilwilly Industrial Estate, to better serve its customers in Penrith and the surrounding areas.

In 2018 the Cheshire team move from the site in Macclesfield to larger premises in Congleton, further enhancing the service for local customers.

unprecedented times

The business rebrands under the trading name of Heatons Group with a new name and logo to better reflect the many additional services and divisions now on offer, including facilities supplies, office interiors, print, promotional gifts, workwear, managed print and education.

Covid-19 sweeps the globe but Heatons remains operational throughout the pandemic continuing deliveries, introducing a range of covid-combatting and PPE essentials helping our customers stay safe at work and prevent the spread of the virus.

As lockdown takes everyone by surprise and with PPE in short supply, we were keen to do our bit, helping out as much as possible with donations of care packages to local charities and good causes.

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going for gold

The business expands with a head office move to a new location in Bromborough. The bigger premises provide a more collaborative working environment, increased warehousing capacity and a new workwear production suite with 4 embroidery machines.

Heatons achieves gold status certification from the Weaver social sustainability programme, which helps businesses implement sustainable practices relating to carbon footprint, waste management, single-use packaging, sustainable products and social responsibility.

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what next for heatons?

Heatons continues to evolve and diversify with the aim of becoming the ‘go-to’ supplier for customers across our range of 6 dedicated divisions.

Doing our bit for the planet remains high on our agenda and our sustainability journey continues as we look at ways to reduce our own overall business impact on the environment, including our own offices, warehouse facilities and delivery fleet. We also aim to find new ways to support our customers with their own sustainability goals, introduce more eco-friendly alternatives to our product ranges and work with more like-minded businesses to develop greener, more innovative ways of working.