Global swimwear firm Speedo has elected to stay in Nottingham, England, where the company has had a presence for 50 years. Speedo will move into a new high-tech office building in the city’s center near the end of 2010. The company says the new facility will help retain its current work force of 170 and attract new talent.
“We have a long history in Nottingham and have built a strong, talented work force in the region,” David Robinson, president of Speedo International, tells Site Selection. “We also have strong links with the universities in the area which support our R&D efforts. Both the East Midlands Development Agency and Nottingham Council have also been very supporting in helping to meet our needs as a business.”
Robinson says Speedo’s European operation moved to Nottingham 50 years ago, attracted by the manufacturing skills available in the area. At that time, most of the company’s European swimwear was manufactured in Nottingham. In 1992, global brand management was moved to Nottingham and manufacturing moved to continental Europe and Asia, Robinson says. Speedo is owned by the Pentland Group, based in the London suburb of Finchley. That area was also considered for Speedo’s new headquarters.