A Staffordshire industrial battery systems specialist increased sales in 2020/21 despite a market downturn due to the coronavirus crisis.
Whilst the market for motive power batteries was down around 25 per cent during the period, Hoppecke Industrial Batteries bucked the trend – growing its sales by more than 15 per cent compared with the previous financial year.
Stuart Browne, general manager at the Newcastle-under-Lyme business, said: “It’s been a tough year, and like everyone, we’ve had to adapt.
“We’ve coped well due, in part, to key strategic planning to mitigate any fall out from Brexit. However, our achievement is largely thanks to a team effort to pull together and support customers throughout the pandemic.”
Hoppecke implemented robust plans to ensure it was well-prepared for Brexit and that it would be ‘business as usual’ from January 1.
Throughout the last 12 months, the company has maintained higher than average stock levels to ensure an uninterrupted supply for its customers.
This approach meant Hoppecke was able to exceed its monthly sales targed by more than 200 per cent in December.
At the same time, the firm has been able to retain all of its employees and even took on some temporary staff to work in its warehouse during busy periods.
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Stuart added: “The nation is really getting to grips with the pandemic. I believe we’ve overcome the biggest challenges and am optimistic about the future.
“We’re hoping for a less volatile 2021/22 and look forward to seeing those customer businesses that have been most severely impacted by Covid-19 bounce back.”