Article in the Yorkshire Times.

John King Chains, the British fifth-generation family-owned manufacturer of heavy-duty conveyor chains for the materials handling industry, is seeing explosive growth in Europe as it defies the odds in the UK manufacturing sector.

The company, which was founded in 1926 in unison with the mechanisation of the UK coal mining industry, remains a family-owned business as a materials handling solutions provider, and has seen expansion and continued success in Europe, with turnover in the region growing year-on-year. The firm has been at the core of the supply of conveyors and chains in the British economy, being a strategic partner for British Jeffrey Diamond, the original supplier to all British coal mines, then into National Coal and later British Coal and others. Today, while the UK coal industry is limited, John King Chains continues to serve the industry globally and has enjoyed continued success as a British company.

Europe also remains a key market, and John King Chains is seeing fast growth in countries such as Germany, Spain and Portugal. Additionally, outside of Europe, the firm has built a global presence, with high growth in the United States, including investments in new local manufacturing facilities, and South America.

Group Expertise: Material Handling Holistic Solution Provider

The Department for Business and Trade played a pivotal role throughout the firm’s global trade journey by helping it to understand trade agreements, making introductions and grant opportunities.

Tris Young, Group Business Development Manager at John King Chains, said:

UK manufacturing has faced several major barriers in recent years, and despite our continued growth, we have faced our own. However, we have been able to overcome these to deliver exceptional services in Europe, including the opening of our facilities in Poland to streamline the business in the region and growing our team to propagate end users.

The Department for Business & Trade has helped us at every step, including in pinpointing initiatives, helping with employing people locally, understanding trade agreements and putting us in touch with specific people within the department to support our growth. This continued growth has also given us valuable lessons about penetrating the European market, particularly highlighting the importance of developing relationships on every level within the target market, the need to fulfil customer satisfaction with cost effective solutions and the importance of providing excellent customer services and going the extra mile.

John King Chains has grown its operations to span 5 locations around the world and customers in more than 70 countries, and has seen its UK headcount reach 92 with £20.5 million turnover for John King UK & Export. It is just one of the many UK businesses exporting to Europe, contributing to a total of £352.3bn in exports to the region from June 2023 to June 2024.

This International Trade Week, running from 11-14th November, the Department for Business and Trade is encouraging all businesses interested in expanding or kick-starting their global operations to attend the free workshops and seminars. Data from ITW sponsor, Santander’s Trade Barometer Report, shows that the proportion of businesses trading internationally that see growth opportunities in European markets over the next few months has increased – in Germany from 20% to 23%, and in France from 15% to 19%.

Minister for Exports, Gareth Thomas:

Our mission is to grow the economy. Using International Trade Week to boost exports across Europe and to reset our relationship with our nearest neighbours on the continent is an important part of that.

It’s fantastic to see John King Chains seeing success in Europe, particularly in the manufacturing sector.