2008 - Fast Track 100 League Table

What is the Fast Track 100 – 2008?
The Fast Track 100 league table ranked Britain’s 100 private companies with the fastest-growing sales in 2008 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 2008 Results

Rank	Company	Activity	Location	Year end	Annual sales rise over 3 years	Latest sales £000s	Staff	Comment
1	Hotel Chocolat Stores	Chocolate retailer	Hertfordshire	2008	225.53%	18,384	160	Opened five new shops in 2008 and now has 30 stores nationwide [* Latest sales]
2	TorFX	Foreign exchange provider	Cornwall	2008	217.08%	265,389	46	Top traded currencies are euros, US dollars and Australian dollars
3	Silver Cross	Pram maker	Skipton	2007	179.46%	15,181	32	Sold its first custom-built pram in Beijing this year [† Latest sales]
4	jjFOX	Recruitment consultancy	Bristol	2007	165.59%	8,953	72	Expanded to Truro because the directors like surfing and beach cricket [† Latest sales]
5	The Book Depository	Online book retailer	Gloucester	2008	160.15%	40,201	27	Offers free worldwide delivery on every title [* Latest sales]
6	Burgopak	Packaging designer	South London	2008	147.73%	5,260	25	Founder drew inspiration for his packaging design from children’s pop-up books [* Latest sales]
7	Paladin Group	Property services provider	Bath	2008	147.34%	15,677	313	Plans to offer energy inspections to ensure compliance with new regulations
8	Manpower Direct	Security services provider	Essex	2007	143.99%	5,566	28	Engineering graduates started the company from a converted warehouse
9	Medicare First	Recruitment consultancy	Central London	2008	142.72%	10,538	25	Claims to recruit social workers for every local authority in London [* Latest sales]
10	Probuild Birmingham	Shopfitting contractor	Birmingham	2008	142.08%	9,442	58	Branching out to start refitting schools and local council properties
11	TDX Group	Debt management provider	Nottingham	2008	138.94%	17,259	117	Acquired Madrid-based competitor to kick off international expansion [* Latest sales]
12	Allen Lane	Public sector recruitment consultancy	Central London	2008	138.72%	16,131	15	Clients include Transport for London and the Royal Horticultural Society
13	Interim Partners	Recruitment consultancy	Harrogate	2007	136.57%	5,691	10	Awarded Age Positive Employer Champion by the Department for Work and Pensions
14	CSG	Business finance provider	SE London	2008	133.12%	28,822	32	Founder previously set up, ran, and sold off a similar business [* Latest sales]
15	Practicus	Management consultancy	Henley	2007	132.96%	21,698	41	Its three founding directors drew no salary for the first 12 months
16	On Holiday Group	Holiday sales agency	West Sussex	2007	127.47%	11,430	56	Says its management has more than 60 years of experience in the travel industry
17	Towry Law	Independent wealth adviser	Bracknell	2007	119.21%	49,161	650	Made five acquisitions in 2007, including Baker Tilly Financial Services
18	Mayday Healthcare	Recruitment consultancy	Central London	2007	118.85%	11,031	32	Claims its offices haven’t closed in four and a half years
19	Hobson Prior	Recruitment consultancy	Tunbridge Wells	2007	116.76%	8,186	19	Supplies highly skilled specialists for drug discovery and approval projects
20	First Point Group	Telecoms recruitment consultancy	Central London	2008	114.76%	10,518	20	Headquartered in London but claims not to have a single British client [* Latest sales]
21	Reflex Vehicle Solutions	Vehicle rental provider	Middlesbrough	2007	114.75%	16,145	54	Its 500 clients include DHL and Network Rail
22	ea Consulting Group	Business management consultancy	Twickenham	2008	114.35%	20,646	38	Originally founded to manage change arising from the introduction of the euro
23	Applied Language Solutions	Translation services provider	Manchester	2008	111.43%	5,480	85	Founder was featured on Dragons’ Den and Channel 4’s Secret Millionaire [* Latest sales]
24	Mentor IMC Group	Oil industry consultancy	East London	2008	107.91%	28,215	13	Iceni Capital recently took a 55% stake in the company
25	New Career Skills	Vocational training provider	East Sussex	2008	104.72%	5,266	33	Counts Halifax Rugby Union player Will Kay as one of its graduate electricians
26	33six Consultancy	Recruitment agency	Central London	2007	100.62%	8,109	27	Founder previously set up and sold two businesses [* Latest sales]
27	Octavian Security	Security services provider	Nottingham	2008	100.26%	8,317	500	Placed former Gurkha soldiers as guards at Ikea store in Nottingham [* Latest sales]
28	AO.com	Household appliance supplier	Bolton	2008	99.56%	80,982	263	Says it has made about 225,000 deliveries this year [* Latest sales]
29	Asteral	Medical equipment provider	Reading	2008	98.43%	11,084	37	Claims most of its staff are clinical scientists, medical engineers or radiation specialists
30	Seven Publishing Group	Magazine publisher	South London	2007	96.73%	30,751	161	Publishes magazines for Sainsbury’s and fashion retailer Asos.com
31	Danbro	Payroll services provider	Blackpool	2008	95.79%	34,924	1,021	Husband and wife team used a redundancy payout to set up company
32	Global Resourcing	IT recruitment consultancy	Bromley	2007	92.57%	9,723	27	Is expanding into new sectors such as construction in Dubai and the UAE
33	Ping Pong	Restaurant chain	Southeast London	2008	90.89%	10,632	416	Founded by the former general manager of Nobu restaurant [† Latest sales]
34	Kew Green Hotels	Hotel operator	West London	2007	90.73%	37,424	720	Runs the largest Holiday Inn Express in Europe at Stansted airport
35	Cornwallis Elt	Recruitment consultancy	Central London	2007	90.09%	8,157	16	All three directors compete in endurance sporting events for charity [† Latest sales]
36	innocent	Fruit drinks maker	West London	2007	89.14%	113,193	280	Claims 130,000 people a week sign up for its innocent e-mail [* Latest sales]
37	Balhousie Care Group	Care home operator	Forfar	2008	88.76%	8,630	400	Sponsors a PhD student at Dundee University to carry out research on dementia
38	Fusion People	Technical recruitment consultancy	Hampshire	2007	88.01%	34,135	171	Has just opened an office in Perth, Australia
39	Draycott Ward	Insurance industry consultancy	Bath	2008	87.12%	5,639	22	Sales jumped sharply on account of the 2007 floods
40	LNT Group	Care home developer	Leeds	2008	86.60%	25,736	79	Says it is building 15 new care homes, with capacity for more than 1,000 beds
41	Geothermal International	Renewable energy supplier	Coventry	2008	85.81%	12,796	70	Claims to have laid more than 300,000 metres of pipe to extract ground heat [* Latest sales]
42	Ice Energy Heat Pumps	Renewable energy supplier	Oxfordshire	2008	85.43%	7,769	70	Recently acquired an underfloor heating company to launch Ice Energy Floor Heating [* Latest sales]
43	G2V Recruitment Group	Recruitment consultancy	Manchester	2008	84.98%	15,981	28	Recently backed a former employee’s recruitment start-up [* Latest sales]
44	Holiday Taxis	Airport transfer provider	West Sussex	2007	84.31%	8,587	28	Founder took a job as a holiday rep in Corfu during a gap year and still works in travel
45	Shilton Sharpe Quarry	Legal recruitment consultancy	Central London	2007	83.07%	6,874	40	Started from a Fleet Street Starbucks in 2002
46	Oyster Partnership	Recruitment consultancy	Central London	2008	82.90%	5,305	22	Sponsors carbon offset projects and claims to be fully carbon neutral [* Latest sales]
47	Miroma	Media barter company	Central London	2008	80.09%	9,125	10	Founder did barter deal with Regus to secure his first office in St James’s Square [* Latest sales]
48	Compello Staffing Group	Recruitment consultancy	Glasgow	2007	79.82%	52,269	148	Made its second acquisition in the oil and gas recruitment sector in a £4m deal last year
49	Investigo	Recruitment consultancy	Central London	2008	79.60%	19,209	48	Undertakes finance recruitment for Tesco, Marks & Spencer and Amazon [* Latest sales]
50	SPI (Materials)	Exhaust component supplier	Staffordshire	2007	77.98%	9,139	12	Claims to supply more than 10m exhaust parts to car makers each month
51	Kinsey Allen Consulting	Executive search consultancy	East London	2007	77.69%	8,721	37	Handles only permanent placements to clients such as JP Morgan
52	Harkand Group	Offshore services provider	Aberdeen	2007	77.17%	56,198	322	Bank of Scotland Corporate invested a reported £80m for a 12.5% stake in April
53	AJ Power	Diesel generator manufacturer	Northern Ireland	2008	76.44%	18,005	51	Recently launched a range of green generators running entirely on biodiesel fuel
54	No 1 Currency	Foreign exchange specialist	Edinburgh	2008	75.50%	474,061	39	Says its new system can process hundreds of exchange transactions per second
55	Alsbridge	Outsourcing consultancy	Central London	2007	74.43%	6,125	28	Works with more than 40 clients, including a range of FTSE 100 companies
56	Towergate Insurance	Insurance underwriter and broker	Maidstone	2007	72.78%	268,931	3,299	Claims to be Europe’s largest privately owned insurance intermediary
57	Acteon	Subsea services provider	Norwich	2007	71.72%	194,690	1,041	Acquired competitors in Brazil and Singapore in 2007
58	Gü Chocolate Puds	Premium pudding maker	West London	2008	71.07%	16,776	38	Recently started selling hot chocolate served in Waitrose cafes [* Latest sales]
59	Maria Mallaband Care Group	Care home operator	Leeds	2007	71.03%	25,158	1,095	Company also builds and sells retirement apartments
60	Savant	Construction consultancy	Central London	2007	70.84%	21,732	460	Its construction projects include the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Moscow [* Latest sales]
61	McLaren Construction	Builder	Essex	2007	70.75%	133,843	131	Projects include Europe’s first carbon-neutral logistics depot based in Staffordshire
62	People Source Consulting	IT recruitment consultancy	Bristol	2008	68.40%	5,378	25	Set up with a grant from the Prince's Trust [* Latest sales]
63	Edge Recruits	Recruitment consultancy	Devon	2008	67.95%	6,116	15	Developed “Job Pods”, video booths where jobseekers can sign up and register CVs [* Latest sales]
64	Ten Lifestyle Management	Concierge service provider	Central London	2008	67.71%	10,034	149	Its concierge service advises clients on eco-friendly holidays and energy-efficient homes [* Latest sales]
65	NET-A-PORTER.com	Online fashion retailer	Central London	2008	67.32%	55,158	331	Has received more than £10m in funding since its launch eight years ago
66	Health Management	Occupational health adviser	East Sussex	2007	66.77%	7,571	102	Claims to work with 32 FTSE 250 companies
67	Sprue Aegis	Safety products manufacturer	Coventry	2007	66.72%	7,263	18	Recently launched a new line of wireless fire safety devices
68	Staffgroup	Recruitment consultancy	Central London	2008	65.74%	13,168	41	Says 12 languages are spoken in its London head office
69	The Instant Group	Office supplier	Central London	2008	64.98%	5,331	80	Claims to work with more than 50 FTSE 100 companies [†* Latest sales]
70	Fast & Fresh Restaurants	Subway sandwich franchiser	Preston	2007	64.55%	6,525	350	Offers a range of sandwiches containing only 6g of fat or less
71	Go Ape	Adventure course operator	Suffolk	2007	63.67%	6,084	247	Claims to take up to 100,000 bookings a year for its adventure courses
72	Caspian UK Group	Burger King franchiser	Surrey	2007	63.62%	41,828	1,159	Claims to be one of the largest Burger King franchisers in Britain
73	Sloane Square Hotel	Hotel operator	Central London	2007	63.53%	6,051	100	Has put a laptop, wireless broadband and a PlayStation in every hotel room
74	Inside Ideas Group	Marketing services provider	Central London	2008	63.15%	8,439	31	Claims that automated marketing technology is the key to its success [* Latest sales]
75	Playforce	Playground equipment maker	Wiltshire	2007	62.71%	6,374	36	Makes up to 100 installations of its playground equipment per month
76	MSI Group	Recruitment consultancy	Central London	2007	62.24%	9,202	26	Claims to be the preferred supplier of staff for Ericsson Japan [* Latest sales]
77	7city Learning	Training course provider	Central London	2007	61.76%	16,524	97	Claims it trains about 20,000 staff each year for clients including HSBC and Citigroup [† Latest sales]
78	Move with Us	Residential property broker	Cambridgeshire	2008	61.30%	27,900	201	Says it sold more than £500m worth of part-exchange property in the last year
79	Dawnus Construction	Civil engineering contractor	Swansea	2007	61.16%	68,783	401	Projects include an environmentally sustainable centre on Skomer Island, Pembrokeshire
80	Henleys Clothing	Fashion retailer	Manchester	2008	60.65%	25,731	63	Now has a new retail division with nine stores nationwide [* Latest sales]
81	Abel & Cole	Organic produce retailer	Wimbledon	2007	60.49%	27,939	321	Food past its sell-by date feeds animals at Longleat Safari Park and the London Zoo
82	Lucy Wernick & Associates	Clothing wholesaler	Central London	2008	59.41%	11,646	12	Founder started with a £1,500 council grant and a loan from her father
83	Tonic Life Communications	PR consultancy	Central London	2007	59.18%	5,110	30	Has offices in New York City, Dallas and western France
84	Connex Recruitment	Recruitment consultancy	Liverpool	2007	58.66%	6,709	27	Owner founded the business with £7,000 in savings [* Latest sales]
85	Just Lamps	Projector lamp supplier	Berkshire	2008	57.92%	21,362	62	20% of sales now come from its own-brand lamps that the firm manufactures itself [* Latest sales]
86	PineSolutions.co.uk	Wood furniture retailer	Norwich	2008	57.69%	7,176	23	Claims to be carbon-neutral and that only two of its staff use cars to commute [* Latest sales]
87	Simply Biz	Support services provider	Huddersfield	2007	57.53%	10,665	85	Says its non-profit business academy has helped 2,000 users in six months
88	Ink Publishing	Airline magazine publisher	Central London	2008	57.52%	25,280	225	Publishes in-flight magazines in 17 languages, including Chinese, Polish and Khmer
89	DriveTech	Driver trainer	Berkshire	2008	56.82%	10,106	69	Claims to train drivers for more than 200 corporate fleets, including Sainsbury’s
90	Henry Howard Finance	Business finance provider	Newport	2007	56.74%	29,817	32	Claims to handle up to 300 lease transactions monthly
91	Optionis	Professional services group	Warrington	2007	56.36%	248,968	5,801	Claims to provide employment services for more than 25,000 contractors
92	1927 London	Designer clothes distributor	SW London	2007	55.65%	23,115	41	Recently launched a baby lifestyle brand created by Bon Jovi's drummer
93	Joules	Clothing retailer	Leicestershire	2008	55.25%	22,225	187	Claims its childrenswear is John Lewis’s best-selling children’s line this season
94	Creativevents	Catering services provider	Central London	2007	54.93%	10,230	169	Provides bar and catering services to the Red Bull Air Race and Cartier Polo [* Latest sales]
95	GGR-UNIC	Lifting solutions provider	Oldham	2007	53.92%	12,809	39	Its cranes were used to raise the floor of a swimming pool without draining the water
96	Portfolio Payroll	Payroll recruitment consultancy	Central London	2007	53.64%	7,375	35	Clients include HMV, Citibank and Sony
97	Tyrrells Potato Crisps	Crisps and snacks producer	Herefordshire	2008	53.61%	12,910	93	Newest potato chip flavours include beef and horseradish and ale and cheese [* Latest sales]
98	Cameron Black	Design and construction provider	Central London	2008	53.45%	10,281	26	Says 80% of projects are within 10 miles of the company’s front door [* Latest sales]
99	Felicini	Restaurant chain	Sheffield	2007	53.26%	6,799	231	Its Manchester branch is rumoured to be one of Wayne Rooney’s favourite eating spots
100	STATS Group	Pipeline engineer	Aberdeen	2007	52.83%	8,760	103	Recently opened offices in Houston and the UAE

* Supplied by Company † Annualised figure

Data Source: www.fasttrack.co.uk

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