Openhouse, based on the Wirral, are celebrating after being shortlisted as a finalist in the Manufacturing category for this year’s North West Family Business Awards 2024.
The awards champion family businesses across Cumbria, Lancashire, Cheshire, Greater Manchester, and Merseyside, and provide a fantastic opportunity to celebrate successes in style, so it is an honour for Openhouse to have been recognised alongside so many other incredible organisations in the region.
Openhouse was launched in 1992 by Chairman Brian Jones, who at the time was a Singer sewing machine repair man. He said: “We were burning the midnight oil, working through the night to finish one of our first really big orders – laptop carriers as it happened – when the husband of one of our seamstresses turned up to collect her. He was a firefighter. He took one look at the laptop bag I was in the middle of making and said, ‘that would make a superb kit bag for paramedics.’”
“Surprised by his response, I asked him; ‘Didn’t paramedics have professional bags already?’
It was a real Eureka! moment. The very next day I went to the local ambulance station where I spoke to the crews about their kit and quickly learned how difficult it could be to keep track of it all, not to mention getting hold of exactly what they needed in an emergency situation. I went straight home and started sketching ideas – and the rest, as they say, is history!”
Today, Openhouse is the leading bag manufacturer for the Emergency Services and Health sector across the UK. The business also supplies a large range of off the shelf bags, medical equipment, and consumables, and has expanded to supply some of the largest and most hard-working public and private sector companies across eight different countries around the world.
It is still very much a family run business at heart with Brian’s three children Andrew, Laura and Samantha taking over the reins as directors, leading a team of 42 staff determined to provide the highest quality products and services available in the market.
Sales and Marketing Director, Samantha Proctor says: “We are proud of the fact we run a successful family business, and to be shortlisted as a finalist in the North West Family Business Awards is a fantastic accomplishment for the entire Openhouse team, which we are all very proud to be part of. We are very much looking forward to celebrating the success of all the finalists at the awards evening this month.”
Openhouse’s family values are spread widely across all areas of the business and their people are at the forefront of this. Samantha says; “Without the continued dedication from each individual within the Openhouse extended family we wouldn’t be able to function or deliver what our customers require, and being shortlisted as a finalist is an acknowledgement of all their hard work”.
Head of Manufacturing, Josh Reid said: “We constantly strive to be the best and most efficient manufacturer and we are proud to make the highest possible quality medical bags for use in a meaningful application that can make a real difference to save lives.
As a time served British manufacturer our skillsets have been passed down the generations of the team since 1992, and now we are fortunate to have new and emerging talent joining the team.
Our passion for producing items built to last, combined with the latest industry and equipment advancements means we as a team and company never stop developing.”
The awards ceremony is being held in Bolton on Friday 10 May, and the team are excited to attend what promises to be an unforgettable evening of showcasing family run businesses in the North West.
