A County Durham firm which designs and builds authentic Finnish saunas is looking to steam ahead after winning a five-figure investment.
Brothers Jake and Max Newport set up Finnmark Sauna four years ago, on a mission to show people how to build and use a proper Finnish sauna properly, and get full range of their health benefits.
Now, having built up the firm up to a team of 15 and annual turnover of around £1m, they are looking to scale up their operations and double the workforce, after working with NEL Fund Managers to secure a £50,000 investment from the North East Small Loan Fund.
The business has recently moved into bigger premises on the DurhamGate development in Spennymoor, and it aims to strengthen its supply chain by investigating milling its own raw materials, to guarantee quality and reduce costs.
The company uses steam producing, Finnish-made heaters, while all the bench systems within its saunas are manufactured in the 海角视频.
It also only uses techniques and materials which adhere to strict Finnish construction standards.
Jake Newport said: “The saunas that most of us have experienced at a gym or swimming pool are a million miles from the authentic Finnish sauna experience that we deliver to our clients and we’ve spent the last four years building an understanding of what this actually entails.
“A proper Finnish sauna needs to be made with specific high-quality materials, and must be properly insulated, ventilated and vapour-sealed to ensure it provides an authentic user experience.
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“Many of our customers have used them on their travels and they want to be able to replicate the same experience at home, which we are one of very few 海角视频 firms that has the knowledge and experience required to be able to supply.
“We’ve found there’s been a real enthusiasm for the quality products that we’re providing and we’re confident that there are many more opportunities out there for us to build on the foundations we’ve laid.
“We had a lot of personal contact with the NEL team around our development plans and the insight they provided helped us enhance our business plan as the application process progressed.”
Part of the £120m North East Fund and aimed predominantly at smaller SMEs, the £9m North East Small Loan Fund typically offers loans of between £10,000 and £100,000 to businesses in Tyne & Wear, Durham and Northumberland. It is supported by the European Development Fund.
Jonathan Armitage, investment executive at NEL Fund Managers, added: “Finnmark has already carved out a significant niche for its high-quality products and the ideas they put forward for the next stage of their development made a very compelling investment case.”