Airsprung
Airsprung is a British brand of beds and other furniture, headquartered in Trowbridge, Wiltshire and run by Airsprung Group plc.[1]
History
[edit]A mattress factory, Chapmans of Trowbridge, was founded in 1871 in Trowbridge, the county town of Wiltshire, and began using the Airsprung brand name in the 1930s or 1940s.[2] Airsprung Limited was founded in 1965. By 1987, the company was the UK's second-largest manufacturer of beds.[3]
In 1988 the company built a factory in South Yorkshire to make pine furniture.
Ownership
[edit]Airsprung Group was floated on the London Stock Exchange, on the Over the Counter Market, on 22 November 1976 with shares selling for 27p.[4] At this point, the company was the UK's largest manufacturer of bunk beds, and the UK's sixth-largest manufacturer of beds, with 5.8% of the UK market in 1975. The company's turnover in 1975 was £5.7m, with sales of £7.3m expected for 1976. The company made £553,000 in profit in 1975.
On 16 December 1982 it bought the Slumberland Ltd bed manufacturer for £2.25m; Slumberland at the time was turning over around £8m, but had suffered a £1m loss in 1981.[5]
The company joined the Unlisted Securities Market (USM) in June 1986. By 1987, the company was turning over £24m.
The company's shares traded on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) from 1991 until 16 December 2011, when the shares were acquired by Portnard Limited, a Jersey company.[6]
Structure
[edit]The company's headquarters and factory is on the B3106 in the north of Trowbridge. As of 2018[update], the company had revenue of £40m and around 500 employees.[7]
Products
[edit]- Beds
- Furniture
- Mattresses
- Storage-drawer divans
- Upholstery
References
[edit]- ^ Companies House
- ^ "Chapmans of Trowbridge". Grace's Guide. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
- ^ Times, Monday 6 July 1987, page 20
- ^ Times, Monday 22 November 1976, page 19
- ^ Times, Friday 17 December 1982, page 18
- ^ "Recommended Mandatory Cash Offer for Airsprung Group plc". Companies House. 17 November 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
- ^ "Annual report". Companies House. March 2018. pp. 11, 25. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
