2006 - Fast Track 100 League Table

What is the Fast Track 100 – 2006?
The Fast Track 100 league table ranked Britain’s 100 private companies with the fastest-growing sales in 2006 over their latest three years. To find out more about the research and to view all the league tables from 1997 to 2023 click here.

Sunday Times Fast Track 100 - Full 2006 Results

Rank	Company	Activity	Location	Year end	Annual sales rise over 3 years	Latest sales £000s	Staff	Comment
1	Actinium	Payroll services provider	Central London	2005	282.45%	40,745	14	Looks to the 2012 Olympics and the Inland Revenue for growth
2	Kew Green Hotels	Hotel operator	West London	2006	255.90%	34,212	800	Acquired 11 hotels from Whitbread for £80m in December 2004 [* Latest sales]
3	4C Associates	Outsourced procurement provider	West London	2006	245.84%	46,163	101	Procurement contracts with blue-chip companies like BP drive up sales [* Latest sales]
4	Lebara	Telecoms services provider	East London	2005	242.13%	37,868	35	Provides low-cost international calls from mobile phones [† Latest sales]
5	Head Resourcing	Recruitment agency	Edinburgh	2005	206.87%	7,406	21	Scottish recruiters score a hat-trick by setting up a third company
6	Maxxima	Recruitment agency	Essex	2005	195.56%	7,407	30	Provides permanent and temporary staff to the NHS and local authorities
7	Just Lamps	Projector lamp supplier	Berkshire	2006	194.80%	9,926	24	Sells 6,000 types of projector lamps to schools and audio-visual resellers
8	Microline	Mobile phone retailer	Middlesex	2005	181.20%	22,006	50	Sells mobile-phone packages to West London’s Asian community [* Latest sales]
9	Melrob Group	Chemicals distributor	West Sussex	2005	179.13%	6,777	10	Growth sticks for supplier of plastics, oils, and adhesive materials
10	Easy Computers	Laptop and TV reseller	Huddersfield	2006	177.11%	35,893	33	Not content with selling 10,000 laptops a month, launches online TV retail [* Latest sales]
11	Dolphin Music	Musical equipment retailer	Liverpool	2006	175.71%	5,587	20	Two Liverpool students used credit cards to set up musical equipment firm
12	WCL	Change management consultancy	Central London	2006	173.20%	6,156	38	Advises Department for Education and Skills on improving school meals [* Latest sales]
13	Rocela	Oracle consultancy	Edinburgh	2006	158.84%	20,638	15	Company name is an anagram of Oracle
14	Dawnus Construction	Civil engineering contractor	Swansea	2005	150.87%	30,858	136	Worked with BNFL on decommissioning Hinkley Point nuclear power station
15	Wilson Vale	Contract caterer	Leicestershire	2005	144.30%	5,204	175	Brings restaurant-like quality dining to the workplace
16	SEKO Logistics	Logistics services provider	Slough	2006	141.88%	14,262	82	Transports Ann Summers and M&S; items from factories abroad [* Latest sales]
17	Tyrrells Potato Crisps	Crisps and snacks producer	Herefordshire	2006	130.00%	5,951	40	Produces crisps from home-grown potatoes for upmarket outlets [* Latest sales]
18	ATD Travel Services	Travel services provider	SW London	2006	127.98%	32,372	18	Sells 220,000 tickets a year to American attractions such as Disneyland
19	99p Stores	Discount retailer	Northampton	2005	127.17%	42,279	612	All products are priced at 99p in its 48 discount stores nationwide
20	Morgan Hunt	Recruitment agency	Central London	2006	126.99%	35,938	103	Recruits for the public sector, private sector and not-for-profit organisations [* Latest sales]
21	Superbrands	Brand promotion publisher	Central London	2005	121.62%	7,949	18	Identifies the trendiest companies through its CoolBrands programme
22	SmartSourcing	Online recruitment agency	Staffordshire	2005	118.69%	9,542	11	Handles business and IT resourcing for blue-chip companies
23	Encore	Recruitment agency	Leicester	2005	117.18%	10,028	42	Specialises in recruitment of blue-collar staff for clients such as British Gas [† Latest sales]
24	2e2	IT services provider	Newbury	2005	116.75%	112,324	967	Duke Street Capital backed secondary buyout, valuing the firm at £130m
25	InsureandGo	Travel insurance provider	Essex	2005	115.40%	37,213	194	Sells ‘scratch and go’ cards offering instant travel insurance at airports
26	s2s	IT services provider	West Sussex	2006	111.53%	5,341	21	Provides network security for the England and Wales Cricket Board
27	Adviance Technical Solutions	Facilities maintenance supplier	Central London	2006	111.52%	8,027	77	Claims a one-hour response rate to clients including O2
28	Venn Group	Recruitment agency	Central London	2005	108.94%	45,079	218	Twice is nice for recruitment duo’s second company
29	CSG	Business finance provider	SE London	2006	107.12%	8,517	18	Provides companies with unsecured loans
30	Centiq	IT services provider	Nottingham	2005	104.71%	15,447	24	Works as a subcontractor on the NHS computerisation project
31	4L’s Packing	Packer and distributor	Doncaster	2005	104.68%	7,915	87	Repackages and distributes plumbing and heating products for B&Q;
32	McLaren Construction	Builder	Essex	2005	103.95%	48,343	61	Has up to 14 major construction projects on the go at any one time
33	Objective Productions	Independent television producer	Central London	2005	102.93%	18,999	50	Produces Channel 4’s Balls of Steel and BBC3’s The Real Hustle [* Latest sales]
34	Widget	Electronic goods distributor	Stevenage	2006	99.62%	23,880	15	Founded by technology journalist in his front room with enterprise allowance
35	Barchester Healthcare	Care home operator	Southwest London	2005	96.79%	289,172	12,556	Celebrity chef Paul Rankin improves food quality in residential care homes [* Latest sales]
36	PIPC	Management consultancy	Central London	2006	96.75%	17,885	237	Helped to integrate NatWest into Royal Bank of Scotland
37	Orange & Gold	Payroll services provider	Bucks	2005	96.62%	33,025	25	Husband and wife team runs £34m business from rural Buckinghamshire [† Latest sales]
38	Vision Call	Mobile eyecare provider	Glasgow	2006	95.85%	5,896	116	Brings mobile eye-testing services into care homes [* Latest sales]
39	Logistik	Communications agency	Leeds	2005	95.45%	10,984	72	Runs events for clients such as M&S;, Asda, and does the Mobo Awards
40	Gladedale	Housebuilder	Dunfermline	2005	93.11%	474,879	924	Acquired rival Country & Metropolitan for £72m in 2005
41	Ink Publishing	Airline magazine publisher	Central London	2006	92.44%	11,066	116	Publishes airline magazines for 20 airlines across the world [* Latest sales]
42	NET-A-PORTER.com	Online fashion retailer	Central London	2006	91.52%	21,258	112	Claims customers spend an average £475 per order on its fashion website
43	Chess	Telecoms services provider	Cheshire	2005	91.25%	9,738	57	Resells telecoms packages to businesses including Sale Sharks rugby club
44	Card Factory	Greeting card retailer	Wakefield	2005	90.79%	45,720	1,206	Founder began by selling greetings cards from the back of his van
45	Simon Wright Homes	Housebuilder	Maidstone	2005	89.00%	8,405	120	Former banker aims for his company to become Kent’s largest housebuilder
46	Covion	Facilities management provider	Berkshire	2005	88.48%	15,004	414	Supplies on-site facilities services to the likes of Britvic
47	Audley Travel	Tour operator	Oxfordshire	2005	86.71%	26,200	90	Offers bespoke long-haul holidays for culture-seeking travellers
48	Cornwallis Elt	Recruitment consultancy	Central London	2006	85.86%	5,525	13	Specialises in recruiting senior technologists for the financial markets [* Latest sales]
49	Astbury Marsden	Recruitment agency	Central London	2005	85.82%	12,112	50	Recruits personnel for clients such as Barclays and Tesco
50	Abel & Cole	Organic produce retailer	Wimbledon	2005	85.74%	13,368	166	Delivers organic fruit and vegetables to 25,000 customers in south England
51	SPI (Materials)	Exhaust component supplier	Staffordshire	2005	84.55%	5,124	12	Provides metal parts for needles, car exhaust systems and missiles
52	Greenergy	Fuel supplier	Central London	2006	83.89%	774,814	50	Fuel supplier moves into building renewable-energy power stations
53	Joe Browns	Mail-order fashion retailer	Leeds	2005	83.16%	9,174	50	Claims to process up to 2,000 mail orders a day
54	BizzEnergy	Electricity supplier	Worcester	2005	83.14%	109,372	108	Independent electricity supplier that specialises in renewable sources
55	Buyagift.com	Online gift retailer	North London	2005	83.01%	6,722	33	Website sells presents ranging from hampers to Ferrari drives
56	Premier Guarantee	Underwriting agency	Merseyside	2006	82.50%	19,930	35	Claims to have insured £16 billion worth of new homes in Britain [* Latest sales]
57	Expansys	Online electronics retailer	Manchester	2005	82.13%	35,654	168	Rides wireless technology wave to sell mobile phones in China
58	PMI Field Marketing	Field marketing agency	Maidenhead	2005	81.69%	9,696	737	Handles sales, stock and promotions for Universal Pictures and Sainsbury’s
58	Eden McCallum	Management consultancy	Central London	2005	81.69%	8,777	14	Women founders set up business while pregnant with their second children
60	Optionis	Professional services group	Warrington	2006	79.66%	227,569	4,998	Promise of pain-free payroll administration attracts 15,000 contractors
61	innocent	Fruit drinks maker	West London	2005	79.58%	37,724	75	Sells 1m pure-fruit drinks a week through delicatessens and supermarkets
62	Warehouse Express	Online photography retailer	Norwich	2005	79.45%	22,964	40	Claims its website attracts 50m hits a month
63	Really Useful Products	Storage box supplier	West Yorkshire	2006	79.13%	8,826	33	Produces stackable storage boxes sold through Staples and WH Smith
64	Personal Touch Financial Services	Financial services provider	West Midlands	2005	78.84%	57,144	144	One-stop shop for financial intermediaries such as mortgage brokers
65	1927 London	Designer clothes distributor	SW London	2005	78.43%	11,865	23	Goes for bling, selling gold-riveted jeans at £750 a pair
66	Rolling Components	Engine component wholesaler	East London	2005	77.78%	5,623	25	Claims to be the biggest car engine components supplier in Europe
67	7city Learning	Training course provider	Central London	2005	77.77%	6,927	42	Provides financial courses for Merrill Lynch and Royal Bank of Scotland
68	Bfinance	Investment consultancy	Central London	2005	76.32%	5,844	35	Changes tack to take the headache out of selecting fund managers
69	Pharmalink Consulting	Regulatory affairs consultancy	Maidenhead	2005	76.02%	5,063	30	Provides regulatory-affairs consultancy to the healthcare industry globally
70	Connect Group Consulting	Recruitment agency	West London	2005	75.78%	6,953	30	Recruits specialist IT and project staff for Virgin Atlantic and IBM
71	Qdos Consulting	Tax consultancy	Leicestershire	2005	75.45%	8,934	52	Provides online tax and employment advice to 45,000 small businesses
72	The Reflex Group	Label manufacturer	Leeds	2006	75.17%	10,929	82	Sticky label manufacturer produces three billion labels a year
73	Move with Us	Residential property broker	Cambridgeshire	2006	75.10%	11,951	111	Solicitors’ network handled 25,000 conveyancing transactions in 2005
74	Red Commerce	SAP recruitment agency	Central London	2006	74.79%	22,450	61	Underwent £15m buyout backed by Inflexion Private Equity last year [* Latest sales]
75	Worcester Carsales	Car dealer	Worcester	2005	74.73%	47,605	207	Owner still motoring on after selling his first car at 13 years of age
76	ghd	Hair products supplier	Central London	2005	74.51%	57,402	109	Completed £55m management buyout backed by LDC in July
77	WFCA	Marketing agency	Kent	2005	74.28%	12,289	43	Competes with London ad agencies at Tunbridge Wells prices [† Latest sales]
78	The Specials Laboratory	Pharmaceuticals manufacturer	Northumberland	2005	73.56%	5,750	58	Manufactures unlicensed medicines for special patients
79	Redbridge	Telecoms systems integrator	Wales	2006	72.97%	10,494	70	Redundancy was the catalyst for this telecoms start-up [* Latest sales]
80	Portfolio Payroll	Payroll recruitment consultancy	Central London	2006	71.53%	5,868	22	Bookmaker family gets into recruitment of specialist payroll staff
81	NWP Electrical	Electrical contractor	Wales	2005	70.88%	9,758	127	Claims to offer a one-stop shop for all mechanical and electrial needs
82	Healthcare at Home	Home healthcare provider	Burton upon Trent	2005	69.76%	251,731	528	Treats NHS and private patients in their own homes
83	Progress Vehicle Management	Replacement vehicle provider	South London	2006	69.73%	5,188	43	Provides replacement vehicles to non-fault drivers after a car accident [* Latest sales]
84	Hodgson Automotive	Car dealer	Chelmsford, Essex	2005	68.08%	74,673	166	Sells 5,000 Audi cars a year to residents of Essex and East London
85	Holidays 4U	Tour operator	Brighton	2005	66.73%	11,693	10	Sells budget holiday packages to Turkey at an average price of £265
86	Littlestar Services	Musical producer	Central London	2005	66.40%	24,316	16	Linking with Tom Hanks’s production company to produce MAMMA MIA! film
87	Euro Garages	Fuel forecourt operator	Blackburn	2005	65.78%	78,890	199	Refurbishes and operates petrol stations bought from the big oil companies
88	Living Ventures	Restaurateur	Cheshire	2005	65.42%	27,678	856	Restaurant group set up by former Australian soap star
89	Unicom	Telecoms services provider	Manchester	2005	65.29%	21,304	452	Tempts small businesses with low-cost telephone calls and lines
90	LOMBOK	Furniture retailer	SW London	2005	65.25%	7,661	105	A £3.5m buyout pushes furniture retailer into new phase of store openings
91	Bank Fashion	Clothing retailer	Macclesfield	2005	65.21%	30,182	543	Sells branded fashion through 40 high-street shops across Britain [† Latest sales]
92	SEH	Civil engineering contractor	Ipswich	2005	64.22%	126,752	563	Builds roads and provides PVC windows for housebuilders
93	Up & Running	Running equipment retailer	Harrogate	2006	64.12%	5,009	60	Pace accelerates at Up & Running with 21 new store openings [* Latest sales]
94	Premium Appliance Brands	Kitchen appliance supplier	Cheshire	2005	63.75%	11,570	23	Sells competitively-priced kitchen appliances to B&Q; and Argos
95	LBM	Direct marketing agency	Cheshire	2006	63.20%	39,541	1,277	Direct marketing firm rides the crest of the call-centre wave
96	Go Interiors	Building materials supplier	Herts	2006	62.93%	13,458	47	Founders remortgaged their homes to sell drylining products
97	Prohire	Vehicle services provider	Stoke on Trent	2005	62.75%	12,241	30	Leases and manages commercial fleet vehicles for the likes of Greene King
98	Clipper Logistics Group	Warehousing and distribution	Leeds	2005	62.58%	45,005	925	Prada and Woolworths sign up for its storage, packaging and distribution services
99	Rawhide Accessories	Playboy accessories designer	East Yorkshire	2005	62.46%	10,951	65	Sells Playboy accessories to department stores such as Littlewoods
100	MEM Retail Marketing Services	Marketing services provider	West London	2005	62.37%	8,744	2,737	Husband and wife founded firm in a £100,000 buyout backed by NatWest

* Supplied by Company † Annualised figure

Data Source: www.fasttrack.co.uk

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