Wellocks named one of the UK's fastest-growing companies

Wholesaler Wellocks has been named one of the UK's top 1,000 fastest-growing and dynamic companies by the London Stock Exchange Group in a report released today called 1,000 Companies to Inspire Britain.

Co-sponsored by The Telegraph, the report identifies top performers in the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) sector.

The company's revenue has grown from £32.6m in 2014 to £46.2m in 2016 and, to help it meet increasing demand, it is adding 20 new Mercedes Sprinter vans to a delivery fleet that now numbers 126, enabling it to add more routes to its network.

It also recently renovated a 20,000 sq ft building adjacent to its headquarters to serve as a new fresh produce preparation centre, and installed a second conveyor belt.

Wellocks has grown from a small family business into a national foodservice specialist delivering produce daily to more than 1,200 restaurant, pub and hotel kitchens, including Gleneagles, Exclusive Hotels and the Brasserie Blanc Group; and chefs such as Michael Wignall, Simon Rogan and Daniel Clifford.

The food and beverage sector was highlighted as one of the fastest-growing sectors in the report, and one of the most innovative, bringing 16,000 new products to market and investing over £1b in innovation every year. The sector's gross value add to the UK economy is £21.9b a year.

Managing director James Wellock said: "To be recognised in this way is an inspiration for the Wellocks team. It's amazing to think back to where we were and all of the hard work we've put in to build Wellocks' reputation for sourcing and delivering the perfect ingredients to chefs. This has fuelled our growth in a competitive sector and now we're gearing up for more."

Xavier Rolet, chief executive of the London Stock Exchange Group, added: "These companies are the very heart of an ‘anti-fragile' economy: more robust; more flexible and less prone to boom and bust. We must ensure we continue doing all we can to support high growth potential businesses like these."

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