ImagesMagUK_October_2020

INDUSTRY NEWS www.images-magazine.com 10 images OCTOBER 2020 Tag us on Instagram! @imagesmaguk Rowlinson achieves B Corporation certification Employee-owned schoolwear manufacturer Rowlinson Knitwear has received B Corporation certification. Rowlinson states that it is the only organisation in the schoolwear industry to achieve a B Corp certification for its social and environmental standards, with its B Impact score of 107 making it the highest scoring certified B Corp in the north of England and Scotland. Amongst B Corps companies in the clothing and apparel industry, Rowlinson is ranked first in the UK, second in Europe and 14th worldwide. Managing director Neil Ward commented: “Being a B Corp gives us the lens through which we view our world, sharpening our focus on what matters most today and for future generations too. “We’re very excited to be part of a global community of change-makers. We plan to deliver even more impact with the products and services we create, the programmes we launch and the people we work with.” The chair at Rowlinson, Donald Moore, added: “We hope that our commitment to doing business more responsibly will inspire others, and help spread the idea that we can redefine success in business to be as much about people and planet as it is about profit.” B Corp certification is a stringent process that addresses a company’s entire business operations, covering governance, workers, community, environment and customers. imagesmag.uk/Rowlinson-BCorp [Clockwise from left] Neil Ward, managing director; Beth Moore, sustainability officer; Donald Moore, chair; and Chris Rowlinson, business improvement officer Workwear Express acquires Krowmark Workwear Express has announced its acquisition of West Sussex workwear supplier Krowmark. The Durham-based supplier of workwear, promotional clothing and PPE made its first acquisition after Krowmark ceased operations earlier this year. The company has also reported a 30% increase in turnover in 2020, as it continues making a series of new investments to support its three-year growth strategy, which aims for a £50 million annual sales turnover by 2023. This includes the launch of a new technology platform and website to help improve the buying process for customers of Workwear Express. Andrew Ward, chairman of Workwear Express, commented: “We set out on an ambitious growth strategy in 2018 with an aim to increase turnover by more than 20 percent year-on-year to 2023. We’re on track to deliver against this strategy, which is seeing us invest heavily to meet customer demand. “Market appetite for our product range has remained high even throughout the lockdown period, owing to our diverse customer base. We’re now actively recruiting across the business, and our 50 new roles this year follows a similar recruitment drive last year, providing job security to our people in the tough economic climate. “In addition to these investments, we are also eyeing international expansion – with plans to launch in North America in the coming years. As a technology-led business in our sector we see a wealth of opportunity for us to disrupt markets internationally and build on our existing growth trajectory”. imagesmag.uk/WE-acquires-Krowmark www.workwearexpress.com Workwear Express made its first acquisition after Krowmark ceased operations earlier this year